Little Wonders
by Sar-kaz-m
Summary: Hatter has found the perfect career in Alice's world. And it may take him places far stranger than Wonderland. Rating Jumped to M!
1. Chapter 1

_Little Wonder then, Little Wonder,_

_You little wonder, little wonder you._

–_David Bowie_

* * *

Alice climbed the final flight of stairs with a small groan. They'd taken the third floor walk-up thinking 'sure, no problem', but some days those stairs were just too much.

She went to unlock the door, frowning when she realized the deadbolt was already open. Did Hatter forget to lock up properly _again_? She twisted her key in the doorknob and stepped into the small one-bedroom she shared with her boyfriend.

Right away she could tell something wasn't right. The lamp was lit, the TV was on, and she could hear someone moving in the kitchen. Except Hatter worked a second shift job at the big bookstore….

"Hatter!" she snapped when she saw him in the kitchen.

He jumped and turned. "Oh! Hello, luv! You're home early."

Alice's eyes narrowed. "No, I am not. I'm home exactly the same time I always get home. YOU, however, shouldn't be here at all. You should be at work."

"Ah. Yes. Well, about that…"

Alice dropped her purse and keys on the counter and sighed. "Did you get fired _AGAIN_?"

"No! Yes. Sort of." Hatter held up his hands. "Well, yes, but I already have something else lined up."

Alice tossed her coat onto a chair and covered her face with her hands. In the year since Hatter had come from Wonderland to be with her, he'd had and lost four jobs now. First, he worked at a coffee shop, which lasted about a month. Then, the painting job, which actually only lasted three days, because Hatter had ignored the precise instructions to paint one accent wall, and instead had used the accent color to paint swirls all over the room. Creative, but bad. He'd delivered Chinese food by bike for a while, remarkably unhampered by both his unfamiliarity with the city and inability to actually speak Chinese, but eventually the owner's son came home from college and Hatter was obliged to find something else.

For the last three months, he'd worked noon to close at the big bookstore, in the kid's section, which actually seemed to suit him. Alice had hopes that he'd hang on to this one, because not only did it suit him, but as far as she was aware, he'd somehow managed to get it without producing a social security number, or resume, or references besides herself. Alice assumed he'd forged a social, but she didn't want to know for sure.

"What happened?"

"That blasted book. It's got it all wrong," Hatter explained with a shrug. Of course – he'd felt obliged to explain to someone how _"Alice's Adventures In Wonderland"_ was completely inaccurate.

"And what do you have lined up?" she asked, resignation coloring her tone. Alice had finished school not long after her whirlwind adventure, earning a bachelor's degree in business administration with high honors. She'd found a serious nine to five job, and still found time to continue part-time teaching at the dojo on weekends. Plus finding this apartment, and trying to assimilate Hatter into this world.

"Well, it's like this. I was showing some stuff to the kids yesterday –"

"Yesterday? When did you get fired?"

Sheepishly, Hatter admitted, "Tuesday."

Alice groaned again. He'd gone two whole days without telling her he was unemployed again. And since he didn't legally exist, it's not like she could send him to collect Unemployment anyway.

'Showing some stuff' was Hatter-speak for doing tricks, either 'juggling' his hat, or slight-of-hand card tricks. Alice discovered soon after Hatter came through the Looking Glass after her that not only was her new boyfriend a former con-man, smuggler, double-agent, drug dealer, and resistance sympathizer, he was also a pick-pocket and card shark. His hands, which could do wonderful things to her shoulders – and other places – were remarkably talented with a deck of cards. Plain old playing cards too – he didn't need a special trick set. He could do things, manipulate cards, count them, shuffle a completely random deck into order, cause a specific card to jump out on its own, produce extras at will, pull a card from a child's ear while wearing short sleeves. Alice wasn't entirely sure that it was pure prestidigitation – she suspected some genuine Wonderland magic was involved. The one time Hatter was flush, he'd taken a couple hundred dollars from their bank account, found himself a nice cutthroat backroom game of high-stakes Texas Hold'Em, and brought home several thousand dollars in cash.

"_Are you crazy?" Alice shrieked, after waiting up all night worried for her missing boyfriend, who came home near dawn grinning and so pleased with himself to present her with the wad of cash and the story of his night. "Do you have any idea how dangerous it is messing with people like that? They were probably drug dealers and thieves! They could have just decided to shoot you after you won so much of their money! What if they followed you home?"_

_Hatter shrugged, "They tried, but the day I can't loose a tail that blatant in any world is the day I start pushing up daisies."_

Still, he'd never gone back to card-sharking, honoring her wishes by trying to stay straight.

"So, you were showing the kids some stuff – only cards I hope?"

"Of course! I'm not going to teach the tykes to grift!" Hatter seemed genuinely offended by the implication. "Just some stuff to entertain them. And this man stops and starts watching. Pretty soon, 'e asks if 'e can talk to me. Turns out 'e's got a pub sorta place where 'e books 'magic' acts. Calls it The Magic Club. Says if I can impress 'is partner, they'll pay me to walk around table to table and do my stuff. So today I go over to the club, and in about a half-hour, I've shown 'em some of what I can do. Plus, I lifted the guy's cufflinks and watch, _while 'e's lookin' at me_, and 'e never noticed." Hatter's accent thickens as he gets excited, telling her. He'd lost some of that lilt in the past year, and she secretly misses it. So Alice can't help but smile as he tells her about his audition for the Magic Club. "O'course I gave 'em back, just making it part of the bit, you know? So they offer me a deal – a hundred fifty bucks cash a night, plus tips, from seven to midnight, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Just walk around between the main stage acts, chat up the customers, do tricks at the tables."

Alice blinks. Surprising, it is a perfect job for Hatter. He can be his usual self – rakishly charming – wear his own wild clothing, even use his real name, and everyone will believe it's an act. And the things he can do with cards are really remarkable, and no one's going to figure them out. Alice has been watching him play for a year and has yet to figure out how he does any of the tricks.

She glanced at the clock. "Do you start tonight?"

"No, tomorrow." Hatter seemed to be waiting on her judgment.

"Well, don't fall over or anything, but I think it's a great idea. It certainly suits you." He rolled his eyes at her inadvertent pun, and she smiled. "Alright, I've decided not to be pissed at you. Come here."

Hatter crossed the kitchen and wrapped his arms around her. He pressed his cheek against hers. "I'm sorry about the bookstore, luv."

"It's alright," she sighed, enjoying his embrace. She loved him, no doubt about that, though the constant uncertainty of his employment wore on her. "You couldn't just be independently wealthy?"

Hatter's chuckle rumbled against her. "Sorry." He leaned back and smirked. "You could always give that Jack a call, see if 'e's still available." Hatter occasionally joked about Alice going back to Jack. She saw right through him – he sometimes needed reassurance that he was really her choice.

"No, I'll stick with the scoundrel I've got, thanks." She kissed him, hard at first, but then he gentled the kiss, turning it sweet and loving, and curling her toes with the intensity. "Okay, okay," she laughed breathlessly.

Hatter grinned, giving her one last squeeze before letting go. "You'll have to help me," he said.

"How?"

"Well, of course, I'll now officially be 'the Mad Hatter'." His grin was positively impish. "Gotta make sure I look the part."

Alice mock-moaned in fake fear. "No! Not another shopping trip!"

* * *

_To Be Continued._


	2. Chapter 2

_There's a Starman waiting in the sky__**  
**__He's told us not to blow it__**  
**__Cause he knows it's all worthwhile_

_--David Bowie_

* * *

Hatter settled into the role of a magician like his favorite hat settling onto his head. He had an uncanny way of recognizing exactly how far he could go with any given table, whether it was just to charm and chatter and do his card tricks, or if he could swipe watches and bracelets and necklaces, all returned of course with a brilliant grin and cocky apology.

He resuscitated his wild dressing style from Wonderland, adding only a new little sign in his hatband to play up the connection – _"In this style, 10/6"_ – and sometimes pinning an exotic lily to a lapel. He'd raided every thrift shop in a three borough radius for wild shirts, funky jackets, and hats, oh goodness, the wilder the hat the better.

After three surprisingly successful weeks, Alice went to see him perform. She sat at the bar and nursed a cocktail as Hatter wound through the room between the main stage performances. The marquee outside had top-billed the stage magician, but on a side-bar display was a poster bearing the insolently grinning face of Hatter, with the words "And Featuring, The Mad Hatter" boldly across the bottom.

She wore the blue dress, this time with black tights and heels, and a little black jacket, and Hatter took great delight in introducing her to all his coworkers. He'd tell them her name, and they'd chuckle and nod at first, then laugh and shake her hand when they realized _no really, her name is Alice._

Between his tours of the room, he'd sit next to Alice, as close as possible, and he'd grin and chat with the bartender and waitresses, keeping a warm arm around her waist. Alice smiled up at him, happy to see the return of the cocky Hatter who'd alternately charmed and infuriated her during their adventure, the one she'd come to love. She had not realized how very far he'd slipped away from his essential self in trying to fit in here in her world. The realization that he'd done so much, suppressed so much of himself, in trying to fulfill what she thought she needed, only made her love him more.

At one point in the evening, a couple took a table, and they laughed when Hatter went through his tricks. A little while later, the man stopped Hatter over by the restrooms and engaged him in a hushed conversation. Alice wasn't sure, but she thought she saw Hatter palm something the man had slipped to him, and pocket it.

"What's that about?" she asked quietly when Hatter rejoined her.

Hatter quirked a brow. "Watch next time I go over there."

An hour later, with a flourish, Hatter flipped over a card to reveal a little black velvet box suddenly appearing on their table. With cheerful banter, he accused the man of 'barging in on his act', and deftly slipped away in time to let the man propose to his date.

"That was great," Alice told Hatter later.

"He also tipped me fifty bucks, crazy blighter."

"Crazy for proposing?" Alice asked, a tiny corner of her mind wondering if Hatter were against marriage.

"Crazy for tipping! I'd've done it for free," Hatter answered with a grin, and another toe-curling kiss.

Suddenly, time was tripping cheerfully by. Alice went to work, satisfied with her job, and at home, Hatter's grin and his clever hands and his love kept her warm and happy. Hatter earned enough in three nights of work each week to cover his half of their expenses, and seemed to be enjoying himself better than he had since coming to her world. For a while, everything was right in their private world.

Then one Thursday, Hatter came home a little quiet. It was late – he never got home before midnight – but Alice liked to be awake to greet him, and she quickly noticed his subdued mood.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

Hatter frowned. "Nothing really. Did really well tonight, couple of extra tips."

"So?"

He stripped out of his outfit, and climbed into bed with her, clad in only a loose pair of shorts. "There was an older man there," he said as he cuddled her close. "Watching me."

"People watch you all the time, hon."

"This fellow was different." Hatter paused, then said, "He had on a baggy grey suit, a pair of tinted glasses, and a grey fedora." Alice rolled her eyes. Only Hatter would identify someone's hat by specific style. "He sat at the bar, and when I offered a trick, he watched with…. like he knew. Like he was an old con."

"Ah," Alice sighed. She felt Hatter nod.

"He had long narrow fingers, and when I shuffled, they twitched. He was an old con, Alice, he's been in the game."

"Did he say anything?"

"No, just watched, and thanked me. No tip. But I noticed Jerry and Hal being real polite to him." Jerry and Hal were the owners and managers of The Magic Club.

"What does this mean?" Alice asked.

"I don't know. Do you have to have a license or something, to be a magician?"

"I don't think so. I mean, there's like… a sort of union. I think. We could look it up tomorrow."

Hatter kissed the top of her head in agreement, and hugged her tightly. The two quickly fell asleep.

When Alice got home from work on Friday, Hatter was already dressed for the evening, in black slacks, a red paisley silk shirt, not unlike the one he'd worn when they met, and a bright orange porkpie on his head. A black jacket was tossed over the back of the couch, and he himself was poking at the computer keyboard.

"Find anything?" she asked.

"Yeah. I could be in trouble." Hatter explained that he'd found a couple of references to magicians' organizations, and since he didn't hold membership in any, he might be skirting a professional line. "Even if it isn't officially required, luv, it's tricky. I know how the con works, and folks don't like some new pup coming along, making a score without the brotherhood's say so."

"Honor among thieves?" Alice offered, amused at his concern.

Hatter gave her a look. "Sort of. More like, a territory. Ever notice how you see the same homeless guy day after day in the same spot beggin' for change? If you think they aren't organized, you're completely off base."

"So what will you do?"

Hatter shrugged. "Go to work. Play my games, see what happens."

Alice hugged him. "You have a good reputation. You've never actually stolen anything, you always give it back. You entertain, and you're popular. Even Jerry has said that people are coming back more regularly to see your tricks. So even if these magicians blacklist you, which has to be about the worst they could do, Jerry might keep you on."

Hatter frowned. "He might lose his main acts over it. We'll see."

Alice kissed him, and then said, "You be careful."

* * *

To Be Continued

_AN- the Magic Club is loosely based on a certain club in a certain 80s movie starring a certain Pop Music Icon. Only you know, nicer, with a better reputation._


	3. Chapter 3

_Although I wasn't there, he said I was his friend_

_Which came as some surprise, I spoke into his eyes_

_I thought you died alone, a long long time ago_

–_David Bowie_

Hatter went to the Magic Club that night prepared for just about anything. He knew without a doubt that the old con from the night before had been there to check him out. He just didn't know whether he was about to get jumped and beaten to a pulp or…. something else.

Friday nights were usually pretty good nights. Thursdays were quiet, but Fridays and Saturdays, the club was a fairly popular spot for the before-theatre crowd, the after-theatre crowds, and the 'we-haven't-got-theatre-tickets-let's-just-go-out' crowd. Hatter was halfway through his first rounds when he glanced up and spotted the same older man at the bar. This time, the suit was black, still baggy, pinstriped, and the black fedora had a white satin band.

Hatter tried not to let it faze him. He continued his routines, flirting outrageously with a table of half-drunk women, lifting a man's watch and cufflinks only to give them back moments later, amazing the club goers with his slight of hand card tricks. But all the while, he watched that oldster watch him. He avoided that end of the bar as well, a deliberate move to see if the man would summon him, or let it slide.

_Two dogs circling one another_, Hatter mused as the time grew closer and closer to midnight.

Then one of the waitresses, a long-timer called Barbara, grabbed his arm as she went by. "Damn, Hatter! Harry the Hat!"

"What? Who?" Hatter asked, startled.

Barbara indicated the old con at the far end of the bar. "Harry the Hat. The man's a legend! How in the hell can you be a card-sharp and _not_ have heard of him?" She shook her head. "I mean, you've just taken his schtick and moved it a step forward, and you don't even know who he is? I keep forgetting you're not from around here."

"Love, not only am I not from around here, I didn't even know there were legends to be heard of," Hatter said with a jaunty grin, but inside he was as nervous as a two-tailed cat in a rocking chair factory.

"Well, he doesn't come up this way often anymore, and he's retired, but he's an old friend of Jerry's, so I have to assume that Jerry told him to come check you out. Harry's like a… a grandmaster. He's done television shows. As the _host!_" Barbara imparted that last bit with reverence.

_That_ was a level, Hatter had come to understand, much higher than grifting the tables at some club. All the stage magicians seem to have two goals – to go to someplace called Las Vegas, and to be on television. The sum total of Hatter's ambitions was to support himself and Alice. He didn't care about the Las Vegas place or the noisy picture box. This job left him with all his days free to read and sip tea, and most of his evenings to revel in the company of his Alice, and that's all Hatter was interested in.

"Barbara," Hatter asked quietly. "He's not gonna be pissed, is he? That I'm playing his con?"

Barbara laughed. "Are you kidding? He might adopt you!" She winked and picked up a tray of replenished drinks, off to deliver them to her tables. Yet when Hatter looked back down the bar, the mysterious Harry the Hat had vanished.

Now his curiosity was aroused. This obviously well-known retired grifter had apparently made a particular trip up to the city just to see Hatter play his games? That didn't seem right to Hatter, it seemed a bit too much. More likely, the man had his own reasons for being in town, and stopped by the club to remember old times, and it was just Hatter's luck that the man was a card-sharp.

Finally, it was midnight. Hatter patted down his pockets to make sure he hadn't inadvertently kept something from a patron, then made his goodbyes to the bartender and waitresses. But as he headed for the door, a flash of a coin in the light caught his attention. He turned, and there was the mysterious Harry seated at a corner table, alone.

The old con was performing a coin roll, a relatively simple trick of flipping a coin back and forth over the tops of his knuckles. His eyes came up to meet Hatter's gaze, and with a flick of his long fingers, he silently invited Hatter to sit.

Hatter did, watching Harry's fingers perform an intricate dance with the coin, which vanished and reappeared at the manipulator's will. Then suddenly the coin was enlarged to three times its size, a trick Hatter knew well, but it required having a phony coin hidden somewhere. Then the large coin was converted into three smaller coins, and the silent show ended with a small juggle and the coins vanished completely.

The older man's gaze was slightly challenging behind his tinted glasses. Hatter obligingly pulled his deck from his pocket. _I've shown you mine, now lets see yours, _was how this went, and Hatter was going to follow the rules for once in his life. He had a sense this was extremely important.

He started with a flashy shuffle, nothing any halfway bored college kid couldn't master with time, tossing in a few single-handed cuts. Then he upgraded to a deck roll on the table top, integrating a pass. A number of spreads followed, incorporating a variety of palms and steals and passes. Slowly Hatter upped the ante, to the point where The Hat was obliged to participate, selecting cards with a tap of his long finger, which allowed Hatter to produce ever more involved tricks, making the selected card come out on top, or levitate out of the deck, or one of his best moves, a particularly flashy trick that popped all the cards from his left hand to his right, with the selected card falling out to land face up on the table in the midst of the move. Hatter's particular skill was that the rest of the cards flew in a perfect arch, something that no oyster could replicate, as it required the special skill with the cards that only a native of Wonderland could develop.

That trick caused The Hat to quirk a brow, a silent acknowledgement that the Hatter had skill, and the trans-dimensional transplant felt a slight relaxing in his guts.

"So what's your story, kid?" The Hat asked quietly, the first words spoken between them at the table.

Hatter shrugged. Going for broke, he pulled out a trick he'd been hiding, not sure if it would pass the scrutiny of this master, or if it would give away his entire game. "I came through the Looking Glass of course," Hatter explained with a flourishing shuffle. At the end of it, the Queen of Hearts was scowling up at The Hat. "You folks talk about the Queen like she's a goddess of Love, but actually, she's a controlling bitch."

He whisked the cards together, then set another elaborate layout, all the cards in their proper order around the Queen. "She controlled all the Suits." He ran through another shuffle, laying all the cards face up, then flipping the end, so that they all turned over in order, to display the uniform backs. But the last card that broke free became face up, bearing the picture of a young girl in a pinafore dress. "But then Alice came to Wonderland."

Leaving the image of the Tenniel Alice alone, an image his own Alice assured him was extremely well-known, he quickly assembled a house of cards. "I helped her, of course," he went on, and with a seemingly random motion, he flicked a new card, an image of the Mad Hatter, across the table to land next to the Alice card. "She bought down the whole house of Cards again," and with that, the quickly assembled house came down in a controlled fashion. He was able to easily sweep the cards together into a deck. "Afterwards, I followed her back here, to her world, where we live happily ever after." He swept the two images into the main deck, and with a fast shuffle, he placed a spread face up on the table, where no extraneous images appeared, just the original fifty-two cards of a standard deck.

Harry the Hat leaned back in his seat when the story was over. He contemplated Hatter for a moment, then said, "Alright, if that's the way you want to play it. Teller doesn't talk, you're the real Mad Hatter. That's fine." The Hat took a sip of a drink that had appeared next to him, then went on. "I'm in the market for new talent. Jerry said I should come give you a look over. He said I might like what I see. And I do."

Hatter controlled the sigh of relief he wanted to release. He had really been worried that he would lose this job too, one that he actually really enjoyed. But now it seemed whatever sort of unannounced audition this had been, he'd passed it.

"I'll arrange for you to come out to Vegas next month. There's a meeting. If you're approved, we'll use you in a TV special that's being put together. Just two short bits, a couple minutes, a trick or two. Maybe that storytelling thing. We'll see."

Hatter blinked. "Can I bring Alice?"

The Hat smiled. "Is there really an Alice?" When Hatter nodded, the Hat chuckled. "Sure kid, you can bring your girl. It's no problem." He stood, and produced a business card from thin air, a bit of purposeless magician flash. "Call this number, tell them I sent you, and give them your contact info. They'll make the arrangements." He handed Hatter the card, gave a casual tip of his hat, and walked away.

Only then did Hatter realize that most of the club's staff had been watching. When he looked up at them, the only people in the closed club, they broke out into applause. Barbara bounded over to give him a huge hug.

"You did it, Hatter! You're going to Vegas!" she cheered.

* * *

ToBeContinued

_AN: Yes, I'm borrowing "Harry the Hat", whom I have loved since 1982. My portrayal is adapted from the actual magician, of course._

_AN 2: Wow, I totally just dated myself._


	4. Chapter 4

_I never done good things_

_I never done bad things_

_I never did anything out of the blue_

–_David Bowie_

Hatter hurried home, eager to tell Alice about the events of the evening. The success of the evening, to be honest. The others at the club explained that he wasn't making a permanent decision by doing the show, that in fact if he were to go to Las Vegas, get on the television show and be good, then when he came back to the city, he could probably get paid more money, and get even more popular. On the other hand, if he were wildly successful, he might become famous, and that would lead to more shows and much more money, and possibly the need to relocate with Alice to Las Vegas.

Which suited Hatter just fine, as long as the plans involved him and Alice, together.

Alice had waited up for him, as always. She was curled up on the couch with a book, her shapely legs bent beneath her. When he bounded into their apartment, she looked up with an expression half fearful and half anticipation. "Well?" she cried immediately.

"It was an audition! The con is named Harry the Hat and he's putting together talent for a show. Jerry told him to come up to watch me, and the old con offered me a spot in his show!" He vaulted over a chair and landed almost on top of her, grabbing her face with both hands and kissing her passionately. "He wants to put me on the noisy box, Alice."

"On television? Oh my god, Hatter!" Alice squealed and kissed him back hard. "Oh my god," she repeated. "I remember Harry the Hat from TV when I was a kid. He had his own show for a while. He's hugely famous, Hatter. He really liked you?"

"He did. I showed him the story trick, and he thinks I should use it."

Alice blinked. "Wow. You know, that's one I don't think any other magician would be able to figure out. You must have impressed him." She looked up at Hatter, and pride and admiration shone in her eyes. It made a hot spot start deep in Hatter's chest. Even more important to Hatter than keeping and succeeding at his job was making his Alice happy. He threw himself backwards on the couch, pulling her on top of him to press kissed down her cheek and neck, and along her collarbone as she giggled. His hands started to work their way under her tank top. "Hatter!" she laughed, wriggling against him, which only made him moan appreciatively.

"C'mon Alice, we should celebrate," he told her huskily, already wanting her. He reached one hand down to trace the inside curve of her thigh. He reveled in her breathy sigh.

"When is it going to happen?" She asked distractedly, rewarding his explorations with nibbles along his ear.

"Next month, in Las Vegas," he answered between licks along the column of her throat.

"In Vegas!" Alice pushed against him, leveraging herself up and away from his busy mouth. "You have to go to Vegas?"

Hatter blinked, surprised by the sudden concern and dismay that colored her voice. "Yeah. But he said you could come too. I'm supposed to call someone, and they'll make all the arrangements." Now he got suspicious. "Why? What's the big deal? How far is it to Las Vegas?"

Alice sat up, fixing her top. "Hatter, Las Vegas is more than half the country away."

"So?"

"So! We got most of the way across Wonderland in a day. It would take us like three days to drive to Vegas, maybe more!" Hatter never quite understood the vastness of the country where they lived. He certainly didn't understand the vastness of the world they were on. Their glib explanation to friends and her family that he was from England and had no-one else here but her was easily understood, given the time and expense of travel, but Hatter never quite internalized the distances or difficulties involved. "Oh god, they're going to want you to fly there."

He brightened. "A Scarab? Excellent, that makes it so much easier."

"Not a scarab, you nut, a plane. An airplane. And in this world, you'll need identification to get on a plane. Identification you don't have!" Alice began to pace. "This is impossible. You're not going to be able to fly, but I don't know if I can get the kind of vacation time from work we'll need to drive there and back. It depends on how long they might need you to film the show."

Hatter frowned at her, confused. "What sort of identification?"

Alice threw her hands about. "Like a drivers license or something. In your case, probably a passport, or proof of British citizenship, and maybe a visa of some sort, saying you're here legally, and … jeez, I don't know. I'll have to look it up."

"Well, wait, will these do?" He retrieved his hat from the floor, and pulled apart the lining to remove a small burgundy folder, containing documents attesting that David Hatter had dual citizenship, with US and UK passports, plus a Social Security Number and a resident enhanced photo ID instead of a drivers license, which allowed him in and out of Canada at will, all of which bore the insolently grinning visage of Hatter himself. Before leaving Wonderland, King Jack had impressed upon him the sovereign importance of these documents, obtained for Hatter at great cost, so Hatter never foolishly left them someplace obvious, like in a pocket or a wallet, when such were easily picked. On every hat he owned, he pulled loose a section of lining to secret these important papers.

Alice gaped at the items in his hand. She took them and stared, flipping through them. Her eyes grew larger and larger, until finally she looked back up at Hatter, speechless. He waited until she found her voice again. "Where did you get these, Hatter?"

"Jack got 'em for me, before I came through the Glass. Said I'd need 'em on this side." He cocked his head in confusion. "Will they do for getting on the plane?"

She sat, hard, in their battered armchair. "You've had these all along?"

"Yeah."

She shook her head. "I thought…. I mean, I just assumed that you didn't…."

Hatter sat up straight. "You mean… all this time, you thought I didn't have this paperwork? But, Alice, I had to show them this stuff when I took the job at the bookstore. How do you think I got that job?"

She flushed. "I figured you…. conned your way in. Or forged a Social."

Hatter was not pleased. He rose to stand over her, an expression of disappointment on his face. "So, all this time, after I _promised_ you I'd gone straight to be with you here in your world, you just _assumed_ that I'd been crooked all along. And you never once said anything to me." He sighed heavily. "That's what you think of me, is it? Is it?" When Alice just shook her head, still unable to speak, he grumbled. "Well, that's just ducky, isn't it? You still don't trust me." Her eyes flew up to his, shocked. He couldn't hold back the hurt in his voice. "Alice…. I thought you trusted me. I made you a promise, and I've always kept my promises to you." He turned and walked away, unable to be with her in that moment. Her lack of trust, her assumption that he'd broken his promises, really cut him to the quick.

"Hatter, wait –"

"No, just give me a minute here," he snapped back, retreating to the kitchen. Trying to find some calm, he went through his regular routine of preparing tea, heating the kettle, selecting a blend, then rinsing the teapot with heated water before filling it and setting the leaves to steep. He gathered sugar and cream, and sat at their tiny kitchenette, and waited for the tea, his head supported on his hands, fingers buried in his hair. He just tried to not think for a while. If he thought, then he might start to be angry with Alice, and that's the last thing he wanted.

He could hear her in the living room, moving slightly. He poured himself a cuppa, added sugar and cream, and took one long drink. It was then he heard an unexpected sound.

The soft hiccupping sound of Alice crying.

He left his teacup and peeked around the edge of the kitchen doorway. Alice was bent over her knees in the armchair, crying quietly into her hands. Hatter wanted to go to her – the urge to rush to her and dry her tears, reassure her that he loved her and that all would be well almost overwhelmed him. But the knowledge that her opinion of him was so low, even though she claimed to love him, hurt him more than he ever thought it would. Looking back over their year together, he realized that in her subtle way, she'd always believed him to be crooked. The apartment, all their utilities, everything was in her name. He'd always handed over his pay and let her manage it, all those ridiculous pieces of paper her world required and relied upon. He'd thought it was because she preferred that level of control, that it made her feel safer to manage everything herself, and he wanted her to feel safe. He didn't realize she'd assumed everything he did was under the table.

Almost worse than the realization that she didn't really trust him, was the feeling of betrayal. That she didn't think as well of him as he'd thought she did. And if she didn't think well of him, then who's to say she'd stay loyal to him? He'd given up his world, his life for her. What more could he do to prove himself? Here he'd thought they were a team. Partners. Equals. But clearly he was mistaken.

Tears sprang to his own eyes as the thought occurred to him that if she really didn't trust him, didn't believe in him, then her love was a lie. Their relationship was a lie. She could abandon him at any time. In that moment, he wanted nothing more than to gather his things, and go home to Wonderland, away from stupid Oysters and their damned pieces of paper and their messy phony emotions.

He closed his eyes to will away the tears, but all that did was make the tears run down his face. When he opened them again, Alice was staring at him. Their gazes met, and he let her see just how much she had hurt him by the expression on his face.

Alice came to him then. She crossed the room to stand before him, their bodies half separated by the frame of the kitchen doorway. Her hand shook as she reached out to brush the tears from his face, and he let her, feeling so listless now he couldn't have stopped her if he'd wanted to. She watched him for a reaction, but he just looked at her, his face set into sad and disappointed lines. She let her hand fall. For a long moment, they could only stand there, letting this betrayal of trust and love hang between them.

"I am sorry, Hatter. I should have guessed that you'd taken care of everything. You always have." Her voice was soft and contrite, thick with the tears she'd shed. "I should have known you'd keep your promise. You've always kept them. I'm sorry."

"You hurt me." It didn't even sound like his own voice to him. It sounded small, wounded, like a child's voice, almost accusing in its pain.

"I know. Please, please forgive me. I'm so sorry. It'll never happen again." More tears stained her face as she begged for his forgiveness.

Misery and frustration rose up in him. "What do I have to do, Alice? What?"

She instinctively understood what he asked. "Nothing, Hatter! You've done everything. You're … wonderful. It's me. It's always me." Regret colored her eyes, made them stormy and sad.

"I thought you–"

"I do trust you, Hatter! I do. I love you." This time, her hand sought his, tentative, then clinging.

He dropped his eyes, taking in the way her pale soft hand looked entwined with his darker rougher one. So many times, they'd held hands, from that very first moment when her fear of heights had paralyzed her, to now.

Now he was the one paralyzed, suddenly fearful, suddenly feeling like the world was not at all solid under his feet, because she'd pulled the ground out from under him with her lack of trust, that old hang up he'd thought well and truly behind them.

"Hatter." She sounded just as small and broken as he did. "Please. Please forgive me."

Looking back at her, he could see fear in her eyes as well. Only her fear was of him, that he wouldn't give her another chance, that he'd turn away because of this, that old terror of abandonment. He realized then that he could break her just as easily as she broke him. And that was one thing Hatter could never do, because he loved her with everything he had.

"Alright," he said with a heavy sigh, trying to let go of the hurt. "Alright." He steeled himself, then stepped away from the false protection of the doorway, so that they were face to face, not separated in any way. He took her other hand in his free one, making them one unit. "I forgive you, Alice." She nodded thankfully, more tears escaping in relief. He tugged on her hands, pulling her close enough to wrap her in his arms. They hugged for a long time, waiting for the grief and sorrow to ebb away. Finally, he pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I love you, Alice," he whispered into her hair.

"I love you too, Hatter." She didn't repeat her apologies; he could hear them all in her voice.

He only hoped this would make them stronger instead of weaker.

_to be continued_


	5. Chapter 5

_In red-eyed pain I'm knocking on your door again  
My crazy brain in tangles  
Pleading for your gentle voice  
Those storms keep pounding through my head and heart  
I pray you'll soothe my sorry soul_

–_David Bowie_

Four in the morning. Alice glanced at the clock before looking down at Hatter's sleeping form.

He'd forgiven her for her mistrust and assumptions, but Alice couldn't forgive herself. How could she have doubted him? In the entire time she'd known him, he'd never once failed her – he'd protected her, saved her, supported her, killed for her, held her while she wept, cheered her up, given her times of pure joy and mountains of pleasure. He'd worked so hard to make a life on this side of the Glass, for himself and for her. Until the Magic Club, he'd set aside his bright clothing, his more outrageous hats, his instinct for danger, and his natural talent for mischief. All to settle into the bland and boring state that Alice labeled 'reality'.

She shifted slightly, careful not to wake him as she moved her pillows higher behind her back. She leaned against the headboard and sighed quietly. Alice longed to reach out, to run her fingers through Hatter's thick hair as he slept, but she no longer dared to do it. She felt like she'd lost the right.

Alice felt like she was three inches tall. How stupid could she be? And how it hurt to know that she'd hurt him with her mistrust.

She always assumed there were ulterior motives for everything when it came to men. Certainly, until Hatter, she'd never met a man who'd been purely motivated by a wish for her company. In high school, it had been boys who wanted to sleep with her. In college, more of the same, plus the boys who wanted to sweet-talk her into doing their work for them. At the dojo, it was the casual superiority with which the other instructors – all male – treated her, until she became accomplished enough to beat them all. And Jack, the cruelest cut of all, a man she thought purely motivated by affection, turned out to be the least honest. Looking back, the remarkable irony of how Jack had skillfully lied to her and used her, versus how Hatter had seemed deceitful and yet honestly and caringly protected her, still made her shake her head in wonder at her own willful blindness.

Alice was sure some psychologist would have a field-day with her abandonment issues, and her trust issues, and her paranoia. In fact, she'd bet that there was some sort of complex that drove women like herself to become black belts or some such. Unable to trust men, Alice projected all that paranoia onto Hatter, who never deserved it.

Hatter moved suddenly, rolling on his side to face her, though still asleep. They hadn't gone to bed holding one another as they usually did. Instead they both had been stiff and uncomfortable, lying on separate sides of the bed. It had been a little like sharing with a stranger, and the discomfort made it impossible for Alice to sleep. After nearly a year, she couldn't relax without Hatter pressed against her. So after waiting until Hatter had drifted off, Alice had sat up, resigned to a night of vigil to contemplate how very badly she'd screwed up.

She listened to his breathing for a while. Her sorrow kept her cold, despite the heat Hatter's body gave off. Now, she simply sat quietly, waiting for dawn, letting slow, hot, regretful tears run down her face.

For long minutes she stared at her clenched fists, but then when she glanced at her sleeping boyfriend, she was startled to realize Hatter's eyes were open, watching her. How long had he been watching her cry, she wondered.

After a moment, he reached out to take hold of one of her hands. With his thumb, he gently uncurled her fingers. He glanced down at the red, crescent bruises she'd made in her palms with her nails. With a sad expression, he drew her hand to his lips, gently kissing the marks to soothe them. The gesture was so tender, so forgiving, it made her cry even harder.

"Shh, Alice," he whispered softly. Releasing her hand, he instead reached up to wipe the tears from her face. "Don't cry, love."

Utterly destroyed by his sweetness and caught by the strange unreality of the dim pre-dawn hour, Alice's breath hitched in her chest as she whispered back, "I'm so sorry." She needed absolution.

He hushed her again, propping himself on an elbow to bring himself up closer to her. His hand stayed against her cheek. His expression held a mix of sorrow, of tenderness, of understanding, and of regret. Then a small rueful smile flickered across his face, and his hand slipped around to cup her neck, and draw her face towards him.

His kiss was soft and powerful, full of the absolution she so desperately needed. He forgave her because he loved her, even though she was sure she didn't deserve it. She leaned over him, putting all her soul into the kiss. Alice loved Hatter desperately, passionately. She relied on him to keep her centered, to keep her head on straight. She achingly regretted the paranoia that had made her assume he was still a criminal.

Lying on his back, Hatter's hands were free to bury themselves in her hair as she kissed him. He held her, deepening the kiss, angling his mouth so his tongue could slip between her lips to caress her own. One hand drifted down her spine, soothing and calming, to come to rest at the small of her back. He pulled her closer, pressing her body against him.

Alice melted into him, forever grateful to the whims of fate that brought this man into her life. This strange, wonderful, generous man, who seemed uniquely capable of dealing with the mess in her head. Her hands now rested against his chest as she leaned over him, balanced on an elbow, and she let her fingers drift in gentle reverent touches across his body.

Hatter could feel her remorse and her devotion in the soft way she hesitantly touched him. He felt like their confidence in one another had been shattered. The only way he could think to restore it was to make love – maybe if their bodies could remember, their minds would.

Gently, he urged her with soft pressure to bring her leg over him, knowing she'd feel his growing erection against her thigh. It also allowed him to run his hand up the underside of her leg, brushing fingers gently against the join of her leg and torso, toying with the elastic band of her panties.

She sighed against his lips, still nervous, still needing him to show her the way back to him. His grip firm around her shoulders, he brought his hand slowly up her side beneath the tank top she wore to gently slide along the side of her breast. She shifted her weight more onto one elbow, freeing her own hand to run over him, mapping him, and he encouraged her by nibbling on her lip. He used his nose to push her face aside so he could reach her ear and throat, pressing heated kisses against her as his hand artfully stimulated the soft skin of her breast, until at last his fingers brushed her nipple which instantly hardened at his touch.

She gasped in response, her own hand drifting downwards to cup him through his boxers. At first, Alice only rubbed him, but when he groaned in pleasure, pushing against her palm with his hips, she gripped him through the fabric, finding a measure of confidence at last.

"Alice," he breathed into her ear, making her name an invocation. He bit down on her lobe, immediately soothing the sting with his tongue and lips. He used his foot to leverage himself over, rolling her onto her back. For a moment he hovered over her, their gazes locked together. He could still see the tears and fears shining in her eyes in the dim pre-dawn light. "Make love to me," he asked her, and the fear was replaced by joy.

She drew him down, kissing him like she wanted to crawl inside him. Hatter met her need with his own passion, knowing that no woman could ever destroy him or restore him like Alice could. They had the making and the breaking of one another.

He broke the kiss only long enough to slide her tank top up and off, and she squirmed to help him. As she arched her back, he couldn't resist leaning down to take one pert nipple into his mouth, laving it with his tongue, suckling gently as she moaned. Her nails raked lightly over his shoulders.

Alice shuddered as Hatter turned his attention to her other breast, his body covering hers, a heated weight she relished. She buried her fingers in his hair at last, lightly scratching his scalp, and he hummed against her flesh in approval.

Releasing her breast with a soft wet pop, he worked his way back up her chest to her collarbone with open mouthed kisses, tickling and teasing with his tongue. His lips trailed up her neck until reaching her mouth at last, where he kissed her as if the world had stopped spinning and he had nowhere else he had to be for all time.

When he finally drew back, Alice ran her hands over his defined shoulders, down his chest to scratch his nipples, and over his flat stomach, until she could swirl her fingers through the hair below his navel. She never moved her gaze from his as she dipped one hand beneath the waistband of his boxers, to grasp his erection. She loved the feel of him, the velvety smoothness of the skin over the hardened heat. That he could still want her, that they could still do this to one another after the hurts of the evening, made her heart fill and overflow with love for him.

Hatter's eyes fluttered shut as she stroked him, and the tension of holding still for her made him tremble. But when her thumb rubbed over the end of him, to tease and torment, he succumbed with a groan, collapsing to lie beside her. As she continued her ministrations, his free hand left a burning trail down her body, slipping deftly beneath her panties to press against her.

Alice moaned then, shifting her hips to increase the pressure, and Hatter gently trailed a finger through the seam of her, teasing her in turn. His kiss swallowed her gasp of pleasure, keeping them cocooned in grey silence. They communicated in small breaths, quiet moans and groans, a sigh here, a soft gasp there, through shifts in weight, pressing against one another.

Heat curled through Alice, burning vines that travelled along her senses, setting fires. She was slowly drowning in the scent, the taste, the feel of Hatter over her, and she wanted it. She wanted that consuming feeling, to lose herself in him, to be safe forever in him, to abandon her self and all her stupid insecurities in exchange for _Hatter_.

His fingers dipped and played with her, penetrating one moment, then swirling around her clitoris the next. She whined deep in her throat, pushing up with her hips. His tongue thrust into her mouth as his finger thrust into her body, a matched invasion of pleasure. She let go of his erection for a moment, to quickly bring her palm to her face. Alice turned her head away from his intoxicating kisses only long enough to drag her tongue over her palm. Then she reached back into his boxers, her saliva adding heat and slickness to the tight pumping she gave him.

Hatter groaned, thrusting into her hand as she brought him closer to the edge. He relished the feeling of her strong hands on him. Alice had no idea how much she owned him. In his head, he promised her a thousand years of devotion, if they could only be like this, giving each other joy, forever.

He lost all patience when she combined a strong stroke with a little twist of her wrist. "Let's get rid of some things," he gasped, followed by a bite on her shoulder.

"Yeah," she sighed. He pushed himself up to his knees so he could hook both hands into her panties, drawing them down over her hips. She obligingly brought up her knees to help him. Discarding her underwear, he shoved down his own, shuffling on his knees to be rid of the cotton. Alice bent one leg to her chest, bringing it down so that he knelt between her knees. Hatter leaned over her, pressing his body the length of hers, his mouth on hers to tangle their tongues, his hardness against her core.

Alice moaned as she arched against him, encouraging him to take her at last. Hatter left her lips to trail kisses down her throat and her body, until he could nibble in the hollow of her hip, leave long wet licks against her inner thigh, and finally exhale heated breaths against her most intimate skin. She whimpered as he drew a long lick from her opening to above her clitoris. He wrapped his arms beneath her thighs, bracing himself on his elbows, to hold her still as he teased and tormented, keeping a particular rhythm only moments before forcing her onto a plateau with a sudden change in angle or pace. The fingers of her right hand buried themselves into his hair, gently scratching his scalp, while her other hand gripped the sheets, the headboard, the pillow, any anchor in the storm of sensation he generated in her.

Finally, she couldn't take any more. Alice let out a high pitched whine, an almost inhuman sound of desperation, and fortunately, Hatter took it for the begging cue it was. He stimulated her clitoris in fast sharp licks, causing her to pant in sync, steadily increasing the pressure. Alice's entire body convulsed with the explosion of her orgasm, crying out wordlessly as she came, lightening running through her all radiating from Hatter's talented tongue. He didn't stop, driving her back over that edge again only moments later, drawing her pleasure out. Her eyes rolled back in her head, her back arched, and when she gasped out his name, her voice was hoarse and shaking.

When he'd judged her shattered enough, he quickly slipped up her body, to slide himself into her with one long deep stroke. Still coming, Alice cried out again as he settled into her, the stretch making her burn, her inner muscles clenching him almost too tightly for her to handle his girth.

Hatter could only wait a moment to let her adjust before his body began to scream for motion. He withdrew right to the very tip of him, then thrust back on an angle that made Alice gasp. Her hands fluttered from his shoulders down his chest, until on his third thrust, her fingers dug into his hips, holding him close as she gave him a little circle with her hips that made him moan. He laid himself over her, his chest pressed against her breasts. He only held himself from complete collapse by propping his elbows over her shoulders. From this position, every long thrust he made stroked against her already over-stimulated nub, and in moments he savored the feeling of her clenching around him, legs wrapped around his thighs, and her nails digging into his hips and lower back as she came a third time.

"With me," she sobbed softly in his ear, wrecked and trembling. "Come with me," she begged him.

"Gladly, my Alice," he whispered back. He drove into her, forcing her to angle her hips up to him, taking him in deeper and deeper with every thrust. Alice gasped and willingly gave herself into his control, meeting his powerful movements with her own. Her willingness, her submission drove Hatter harder. Her felt a need for her and possession of her. He bit down on her shoulder, and her pleased moan coupled with a clenching of her inner muscles around him finally sent him over the ledge. He shuddered as he came, groaning a wordless sound mixed of pleasure and near-pain. Alice held him tightly to her, milking him for every drop of ecstasy.

When he returned to himself, he pressed soothing kisses to the bruise he'd put on her shoulder. Alice's hands petted him, running in gentle trails from his neck to his backside. Feeling the euphoria of sex, Hatter's heart ached with remembered love. For himself, the moment had been healing, a setting-aside of the hurts of earlier that evening, a reminder that Alice gave herself to him and only him. He propped himself up on his hands to look down at her, locking his elbows, still buried deeply within her.

Alice's eyes still shone, but with wonder and happiness rather than sorrow and pain. Hatter still loved her, still wanted her. His forgiveness, his love, his passion, even his heat, bathed her in a blissful glow. She felt as if her heart could burst from relief and joy that he could still want to be with her after her stupid mistakes.

"I love you," she whispered up to him.

A slow smile curled his lips, tugging at his dimple and putting a sparkle into his eyes at last. "I love you, too," he replied. With a groan, he slid himself free of her body, and Alice couldn't help the sad whimper of loss, her body still shivering from the pleasure he'd given her. He made a soothing hum, shifting to lie next to her. He gathered her close to him, cradling her against his chest as he placed soft kisses on her forehead and eyelids and even her nose. Alice snuggled into him. With a foot and a hand, Hatter managed to drag a light blanket up over them.

Secure and redeemed, Alice fell asleep at last, cradled in Hatter's arms.

* * *

_To be continued_


	6. Chapter 6

_Life is like a broken arrow-  
memory a swingin' door  
I could be your great misfortune-  
Well I could make you happy  
every goddamn single day of your life_

_--David Bowie_

The morning, bright and new, reflected the state of their relationship. Both felt as if they'd gone back to their earliest days together, when they were still learning about one another. Shy smiles were coupled with lingering looks. Gentle touches and caresses took the place of words.

As Alice prepared a coffee maker for herself, Hatter dropped kisses on the side of her neck. When he carefully buttered his toast, she wrapped her arms around him from behind to hug him. With their pain and their redemption, some of the patina of the daily grind had been cleaned away. Somehow, breaking their relationship down had helped them.

"Will you come to the club tonight?" he asked her.

"Sure," she answered with a pleased smile, happy to be asked.

After lunch, he told her about the card he'd been given, hesitantly, a little worried that it might bring up the fight the night before, but she didn't even allude to it.

Alice smiled at the little card, and then up at Hatter. "Well, we can probably borrow a couple of suitcases from my mother," she told him, and his relieved grin warmed her down to her toes. She settled next to him on the couch, leaning against his shoulder. He immediately shifted, making them both more comfortable by wrapping his arm around her. "I've never been to Las Vegas," she said. "It's supposedly pretty wild."

"Wild? How?"

"Well," Alice hesitated, and then said, "Let me put it this way. The Hearts Casino was tame by comparison."

Hatter blinked as he considered this description. "It's a casino? A big one?"

Alice giggled. "Hatter, Las Vegas is also known as 'Sin City'. It's got a lot of casinos, tons of them, plus theatres and nightclubs and all sorts of things."

At first Hatter seemed disbelieving, that an entire city could be one giant casino. Then he looked worried. "There's nothing…. funny… going on there, is there?"

"You mean like draining people of their emotions? No. Just draining people of their money."

Hatter smirked. "Well, that's done easily enough around here. You people and your paper money and all."

Alice snickered, but then a thought occurred to her. "Hatter, I should warn you that the casinos don't take well at all to …. attempts to tip the scales in one's own favor."

Hatter arched a brow at her. He got what she was trying to say. He was even a bit amused at how delicately she phrased it. "You're saying I could very easily get into to real trouble?" She bit her lip in a nervous expression, and he decided to let her off the hook. "Don't worry, love. While I enjoy a challenge, we're just going for this show thing."

* * *

Later that night at the Magic Club, Hatter sensed a change in the way the others treated him. The wait-staff and bartenders were a touch more respectful. The owners were proud, taking credit for 'discovering' him. The stage magician, an illusionist this week, who'd initially dismissed Hatter as a hack, now gave him a considering look. That of course was due to the sense of competition, though Hatter didn't exactly think that what he did and what the illusionist did were really comparable.

During the stage set, he mentioned it to Alice as they sat together at the bar. She frowned a little.

"It's not that what you do could compete with what he does, Hatter. It's that he's probably been doing the club circuit for years, and you've only been here a few months. The most popular illusionists are _hugely_ popular; it's probably very hard to break into that circle of top performers. On the other hand, there hasn't been someone famous with a bit like yours since… well, Harry the Hat himself. All charm and light-fingers, and prestidigitation. Not that I've heard of, anyway. Sometimes you catch a TV show of various acts, and there's usually someone doing fancy card tricks, but it's usually not as close-up as yours." Alice shrugged. "I don't really know much about it, but I'm betting it has more to do with you getting an audition after only a few months in the business."

Hatter nodded, mulling that over. Sometimes life seemed trickier here on this side of the Looking Glass. While in some ways he could go much further than he ever dared before, knowing that unlike in Wonderland the mark wasn't liable to kill him in retaliation; at the same time, there were so many more people here, and those people had more friends and contacts than was possible in Wonderland. He'd already been warned by staff at the Magic Club on how to spot someone you simply Did Not Pickpocket. Those tips, things he couldn't have learned because he didn't grow up here, plus his own natural instincts had kept him safe so far.

The real problem was he _liked_ this job, he liked doing his card tricks, and he was starting to incorporate his hat juggling into his routines as well, and these were all things that came easily and naturally to Hatter, and so he could really get into it. Therefore, the need to _not blow it_ added a whole new level of stress to his life.

Looking at Alice, who was smiling at the stage performance, Hatter realized the zing of nerves and stress he felt was very similar to tension of their first adventure together. At least this time, he didn't have to worry about Alice running off and getting herself into trouble – she'd stay by his side and they'd get into all the trouble together.

Since Alice was with him, they took a cab home after the club closed for the night. As they sat in the back, Hatter wordlessly took Alice's hand in his, threading their fingers together. She smiled at him, warm and sweet. Hatter held her gaze, thinking back to those few days in Wonderland when his whole reality had been turned upside down.

"You're staring at me," Alice whispered. When he just shrugged, she asked, "Why?"

"Do I need a reason to admire a very pretty girl in a very pretty dress?" he answered.

A slow grin crossed her face, as his words evoked the memory of the moment they met.

The cabbie announced their arrival. Up in their apartment, Hatter pulled Alice into a tight hug. "What is it?" she asked, her breath tickling his neck.

"Just… this time, I'm the one leading us into danger, I think."

"You're not scared, are you?"

He shrugged a little. He didn't mind that tacit admission of being a bit nervous. Alice squeezed him tightly in response, and said, "Look, the worst that can happen is they decide not to use you on the television show, you come back to the Magic Club, and life goes on." She narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm surprised. The man who punched out a Jabberwock, who snuck into the Hearts Casino, who destroyed Mad March, is nervous about flying to Vegas for an audition?"

He smirked. "Alright. Fair enough, it's not as bad as all that. And it can't be scarier than the most terrifying thing I've ever done."

"What's the most terrifying thing you've ever done?" Alice expected some tale of Resistance escapades, dodging Suits, that sort of thing. But Hatter's smirk faded until he looked at her with utter seriousness.

"Following an oyster back through the Looking Glass without knowing if she even cared about me," he told her.

Alice's eyes widened. Of all the risks Hatter had taken in his life, he counted risking her rejection the most frightening. The extreme reaction he'd had the night before over their fight rushed back to her, and she threw her arms around his neck, kissing him as thoroughly as she could.

Hatter instantly responded, his strong arms banding around her ribs and crushing her to his chest, in a good way. After a moment, he adjusted his grip so he could lift her up, her legs locking around his waist, and he carried her into the bedroom.

* * *

_to be continued_

_AN: WHEW! Good grief, this chapter was hard to write. I had to get the transition from the angst and heaviness of the last 2 chapters back into the plot, and OMG it was difficult. I hope I succeeded, for my readers' sakes!_


	7. Chapter 7

__

_For here  
Am I sitting in a tin can  
Far above the world  
Planet Earth is blue  
And there's nothing I can do_

_-David Bowie_

* * *

Alice took on the role of manager, and handled the calls and arrangements for their trip. She sounded crisp and professional on the phone at all times, but inwardly, she found herself becoming giddy with excitement. The production company handling the television show would bear the brunt of expenses, including business class airline tickets, and a very nice room in a famous Vegas landmark hotel. The hotel theatre would be the site of most of the stage magic performances, and the attached casino would likely be used as well.

Alice's mother Carol was equally excited for them, having been given a highly edited version of how 'David' got the job in the Magic Club in the first place, and the full truth of his being scouted by the famous Harry the Hat. In congratulations, Carol gifted the couple with a new set of luggage, though Alice rather worried the entire large case would be taken up by Hatter's hats.

Hatter spent part of almost every day between the offer and the actual departure date contemplating what to pack. Alice knew her lover could be a bit of a clothes-horse, but this verged on ridiculous.

"Hatter!" Alice laughed, as he arranged several outfits on the bed for the fifth time. "There's still almost two weeks before we leave. You don't have to decide now."

He tapped his chin with his finger. "You know, that's a good point, luv. Plenty of time for another shopping trip too."

Alice groaned. Shopping with Hatter was like taking a half-dozen fashionistas on a spree. The man spent more time in a dressing room than any woman Alice had ever heard of.

Finally, the day arrived. Alice had conceded defeat and let Hatter claim the largest suitcase for himself. She easily made do with the second largest. They expected to spend only a week in Las Vegas, even if Hatter got the gig on the show, since it shouldn't take more than two days to shoot his segments. Still, they had no idea how the rest of the days would go, so Alice carefully planned a packing list combining nice casual clothes with dressy options.

Hatter, on the other hand, ended up simply shrugging and he stuffed as many things as he could into the suitcase without crushing his hats.

Alice tried coaching him about airline travel. The security gate made her very nervous, worrying that Hatter's documents wouldn't hold up to T.S.A. scrutiny.

They arrived two hours before the flight. That alone was enough to get Hatter going on a rant, because of course in Wonderland, no-one who wasn't authorized or in custody got on a scarab, so to Hatter's mind, if you had a ticket, you were authorized. Alice tried to explain that it wasn't the selling of tickets that was screened, it was the actual getting on the plane. That led to a long diatribe about dishonest business practices, given that someone could pay for a ticket but be prevented from flying, which Hatter viewed as a scam on the airline's part.

Then there were the metal bits.

Perhaps letting Hatter watch the movie _'This Is Spinal Tap'_ the day before they left was a mistake.

Alice carefully removed all her jewelry and her watch and put it all in her carry-on. She deftly stepped out of her shoes and added them to the x-ray line. Behind her, she could hear Hatter muttering in annoyance as he pulled off his boots. Hat and jacket joined the boots on the conveyer belt.

She shot him a warning glance over her shoulder before she stepped through the scanner. The security official waved her on. She quickly grabbed her shoes and bag.

Then Hatter stepped through. The scanner beeped. Hatter began to smirk.

"Please step back, sir. Do you have anything in your pockets?"

"Nope," Hatter said, popping the 'p'. Alice tensed. She knew he only did that when feeling particularly contrary, or teasing. He dug both hands into his trouser pockets and pulled them inside out.

"How about a belt buckle?"

Hatter, grinning widely, lifted his shirt hem high enough to show the belt-less waistband of his vintage green corduroys… along with a line of dark hair below his navel, and the obvious inference, given how low his pants rode, that he wore no underwear. Alice sighed with frustration as several women nearby tittered.

The security guy waved him back through the scanner, and again the alarm went off. "Please step over here," the guard ordered.

Another guard appeared with a scanning wand, and sure enough, the alert sounded right over a sensitive portion of Hatter's anatomy.

That's when Alice remembered Hatter's amusement while watching _'Spinal Tap'_. "Hatter, you didn't!" she gasped, drawing everyone's attention.

"Didn't what, luv?" he asked calmly.

Alice glared at him before turning to the security guards. "He was watching _'Spinal Tap'_ yesterday."

The younger guard snickered as the older looked blankly confused. The younger turned to Hatter. "Sporting anything in your package?" he asked with a fake accent.

"I swear I'm not," Hatter replied easily. "Can prove it too," he added with a grin.

Alice groaned and covered her eyes.

Then a female guard came to her rescue. "Vintage pants," the woman pointed out.

"I assure you, madam, what's in my pants is perfectly contemporary," Hatter shot back. The younger male guard laughed again, while Alice tried to die of embarrassment right there.

The woman gave Hatter a look, the sort of look that only a middle-aged woman can turn on a younger smart-mouthed male. "The corduroys. They're vintage. The zip is probably real metal."

"Alright, this way," the younger guard led Hatter to a small room off to the side, while Alice waited in agonies of worry and mortification. A couple of other women in the line gave her grins and winks as she waited.

Finally, Hatter and the guard emerged from the room, Hatter smirking as the guard laughed again.

"Next time, Hatter, don't be such a smartass about it," the guard said with a smile as he waved Hatter toward where Alice waited with her carry-on, and his boots, jacket and hat.

"Couldn't resist, mate," Hatter told the guard with an easy shrug. He sauntered over to Alice and kissed her. "Alright, luv?" He took his hat and flipped it onto his head with an easy toss.

"You…. you are impossible!" Alice muttered, torn between amusement and anger.

He hummed a little in agreement, jamming his feet into his boots. Then he leaned closer as he took the jacket from her hands. "Are you going to make me pay for it?" he asked suggestively. Alice couldn't help the giggle that escaped. Hatter donned his jacket and slung an arm around her shoulders. "I've read," he continued, "about something called the 'mile high club'…"

"Hatter!" Alice hissed before laughing outright. His smile told her that he merely teased, but she liked the warm feelings she got from his humor and flirting.

* * *

Alice bought a bottle of water from a newsstand and fumbled with the pill case from her carry-on. They still had almost an hour before the flight, and so she had to take a pill now.

Hatter frowned as she popped the small blue capsule into her mouth and chased it with a swallow of water. "What was that?" he asked suspiciously.

"Anti-anxiety pill," she told him, closing the pill case and dropping it back in her bag. "Fear of heights, remember?"

"We live on the third floor," he pointed out, but Alice shook her head.

"That's fine, it's big heights. Like that ridiculous city you come from, or…" She dropped her voice lower, for his ears only, "mechanical flamingos and casino rooftops and things."

"What does the pill do?"

"It just keeps me relaxed, so I don't freak out." She leaned against his shoulder. "It's alright, Hatter, I've flown before, and I always take one."

"You said these airplanes were perfectly safe," he reminded her.

"Yes, and sometimes fears are not completely rational. May I remind you of your aversion to cats?"

Hatter scowled. "Cats are tricky, nefarious, creatures, not to be trusted at all. A cat will pretend to be friendly and kind, with the rubbing and the purring, and then turn around and betray you to the nearest Suit without so much as a by-your-leave."

Alice looked at him with an expression of surprise. She knew he didn't like cats, but that complaint seemed a bit too specific for mere distaste.

"Nevermind," Hatter muttered, turning his attention to the planes outside the window.

* * *

When their flight was finally called, Hatter's sense of humor returned with a vengeance. He appeared to be thoroughly amused by the jostling and subtle competition to get on board. "As if it would take off without them," he muttered to her, a chuckle hidden in his tone.

Once on board, of course, the inevitable Battle for the Overhead Bins began.

Alice watched with a touch of concern as Hatter surveyed the luggage space the two passengers had been arguing over with intense concentration before smiling calmly. "Right then," he clapped his hands and easily hoisted the first overstuffed item and turned it flush against the side, before moving on and blocking her view of work. When he moved back to sit beside her, she finally saw the result of his intervention and was surprised at just how well it worked. Everything was neatly arranged, easy to access and allowed the bin to close with a soft click when the flight attendant passed by. Both argumentative passengers conceded with airs of disbelief, all wind taken out of their sails by Hatter's brisk and efficient work.

Not wanting to jump to conclusions, Alice couldn't help asking, "How in the world did you make all that fit?"

Hatter flashed a mischievous grin as his eyes scanned the people about them, "Well it was part of my old job requirement now wasn't it?"

The confusion must have been easy to read on her face when he looked back at her as he leaned in to elaborate, "I mean, I know I need some space in my trousers love, but you didn't really believe I smuggled everything down to the Library in them now did you?"

She had to smother her giggles with her hands as Hatter's brown eyes danced.

"Come to think of it, how _did_ you smuggle those two chunks of cheese down there?" Alice asked. "I mean, we didn't stop for anything on the way to the Library, which means you had to … already have had two wheels of cheese tucked into your waistband?" Her tone got progressively more confused as she went on. "Did you regularly keep food in your pockets?"

But Hatter refused to satisfy her curiosity. However, once they were airborne, and under a complementary fleece blanket, he took it upon himself to satisfy a couple of other things for her. Not quite the Mile High Club, but close enough.

* * *

_to be continued_


End file.
